The Princess of the Marauders
by empathicallychosen
Summary: Presolace one short. A story written on a rainy day about the first time the Marauders met baby Hermione.


**Disclaimer: do we really have to do this every single time I mean really you should all know by now I don't own anything. The people really need to get together with their legal department to create a blanket disclaimer**

**warning no beta**

* * *

The Princess of the Marauders

written by Empathicallychosen

"A toddling little girl is a center of common feeling which makes even the most dissimilar people understand each other." -- George Eliot

(o)(o)(o)

Annabelle was not exactly what you might call attractive. In fact to be quite frank her appearance at the moment was quite gruesome. Then again she had never been pretty in the first place. During her years at Hogwarts Annabelle's pale face had been caked with freckles which on more than one occasion was masked by horrible bouts of acne. In the old days she had longed to grow up and finally be rid of the plague that was puberty. These days however Annabelle was probably one of the few people in the entire world that long for her pubescent years.

She attributed this fact to knowledge that compared to the horrors of her current appearance Annabelle had been the goddess of beauty at Hogwarts. Annabelle was only twenty-five years old although she looked to be somewhere in her early forties. Her once pimpled face was now so wrinkled that she now had a frightening resemblance to her Shar-Pei. Nevertheless she was often told that the dark circles under her bloodshot eyes were more like that of a basset hound. (This was not exactly something a girl wanted to hear on a first date.)

Many concerned relatives and the few friends that she had were very concerned about this drastic change in appearance. They would always ask her why she looked so dreadful and her response would always be; work. Annabelle worked in The Department of Magical Law Enforcement as a member of The Accidental Magic Reversal Squad which was doing double duty because there was currently a war in place which accounted for the large number of young witches and wizards panicking and using their magic at unnecessary time. She didn't really blame the children, it was their parents that truly got under her skin. If their parents would just stop speaking of You -Know-Who's latest escapades over the breakfast table then less children would panic thinking that every shadow was a Death Eater coming to get them.

Of course there were always the incidences that involved the Muggleborn children that, for the most part, were refreshingly devoid of dark wizard tales. For some reason Annabelle found these cases far more enjoyable. She was certainly more patient with Muggleborns. Annabelle insisted that this was only because Muggleborn children much of the time did not even know what was happening. Honestly how was she meant to be cross with a child when they didn't even know what they were capable of?

Her partner Maggie would then insinuate her lenience might have something to do with the fact that Annabelle had been a Muggleborn herself and she probably would have been right. Annabelle and Maggie were currently working on just one case much to the annoyance of their colleagues whose own workloads needed to triple to cover up the slack. Maggie would get a little irritable whenever this was mentioned and claimed that she would rather have her normal workload back then have to deal with the ridiculous nonsense of one infant. Which would occasionally lead to Annabelle getting into a fight with one of the few companion she had.

Annabelle could not understand why this Muggleborn infant meant so much to her. Perhaps it was because this little girl reminded her very much of herself, like the toddler she had been dealing with for the past 15 months Annabelle had two very loving parents who more often than not were very busy with their work. Annabelle had grown up knowing there was something different about her and yet clueless as to what it might be. For years she had felt like a mutant always causing humongous magical outburst without even noticing it. Then one day a few months after she had turned Eleven. There was a knock at the door of their home which Annabelle had answered only to come face to face with an extraordinarily short man who had a high-pitched voice.

Professor Flitwick then proceeded to explain to her that she was not an extraterrestrial who had hatched from a pod but rather a very special witch. She had been so excited to go to Hogwarts and discover others like her but she soon learned that she was still an outcast even among her peers because Annabelle had a very unusual talent. She had the ability to stop time.

This was a useful talent where work was concerned because it gave Annabelle and Maggie more time to analyze especially chaotic situations and decide the best course of action. But when she was younger this came as very little comfort to the girl besides having more time to sleep or to cram for the occasional forgotten exam her powers only caused Annabelle ridicule by her classmates.

This was another thing she had in common with 15 month old Hermione Granger. Hermione, too was very powerful, more powerful than any other witch or wizard her age, except for perhaps the Potter boy and his redheaded companion. But Maggie and Annabelle were rarely called to either home because the Potters and their friends were so skilled at dealing with the little boys a visit from them was pointless. Annabelle had been a few years ahead of the haughty, reckless James Potter and was very surprised to see what a wonderful parent he turned out to be. If things got any worse with the Granger girl Annabelle might need to turn to him for advice. Which to be totally honest seemed a little unnatural.

Annabelle's superiors were very clear The Accidental Magic Reversal Squad could not keep on modifying people's memories every week, eventually they were going to cause irreparable damage to that poor girl's family. So Annabelle and Maggie set about trying to find a way of containing the situation without alerting Mr. and Mrs. Granger or anyone else for that matter about what their daughter was capable of. It was one thing to send professors to the door to convince parents their child was a magical being, it was quite another to try and convince two loving parents their baby was one of the most powerful witches the Ministry had ever seen.

Even though her superiors had told them to find another way to keep the girl's unique abilities a secret Annabelle just didn't think it was possible. She and Maggie had been poring over stacks of ancient volumes for weeks now to no avail and little Hermione hadn't done any accidental magic for weeks. Surely she was due to explode at any moment and when she did Annabelle was certain they would not be able to keep Hermione's secret from her parents anymore. This was why Annabelle had contacted Professor Dumbledore. It was an unusual situation and everyone knew that Professor Dumbledore was usually the man with all the answers. This was why she'd asked the headmaster to come down to the office today and give them his opinion of the situation.

Despite her previous exhaustion she couldn't help but smile when the old headmaster walked in. Jumping up from her seat Annabelle rushed to greet him. Dumbledore reciprocated her warm welcome apologizing for his lateness explaining that he had recently discovered ten pin bowling and the new pastime was taking up a lot of his free time. Annabelle chuckled it always amazed her how purebloods could be so fascinated by everyday activities.

"It's fine headmaster. I'm just so happy you could find time to help us with this problem, old Kruskal is going to blow a gasket soon if we don't figure out how to fix this," said Annabelle

"It's really no trouble at all, Miss Berkeley. I'm always happy to assist one of my former students," Dumbledore insisted.

"I suppose we should just get down to business then," interrupted Maggie who was never much for pleasantries.

Annabelle glared at her partner but obliged her wishes anyway and began briefing the headmaster on the situation. Much to Annabelle surprise when she mentioned the girl's name was Hermione Granger, Professor Dumbledore's interest in the case seemed to grow immensely. Curiously Maggie asked if he knew the girl but the old man's seemed to have spotted a Muggle gardening magazine on Annabelle's desk and was increasingly fascinated by it. clearly Dumbledore didn't want to get into the subject. It didn't really matter much to Annabelle whether or not professor Dumbledore knew Hermione Granger what mattered to Annabelle was fixing the situation and fixing it quickly.

"Professor, she began cautiously, waiting for Dumbledore to look up at her before continuing. "Do you have any ideas as to what we should do about Hermione?"

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled more than ever, "As a matter of fact Miss Berkeley, I do. Unfortunately there is no way we will be able to keep Hermione's wonderful talents hidden from her parents until she is eleven years of age. Unless I am very much mistaken Mr. and Mrs. Granger will eventually come to terms with all of this. After all from everything you told me they must have some clues as to what's going on. The Accidental Magic Reversal Squad is only dispatched in cases where large amounts of magic threaten to expose us. It would not therefore have been called to the Granger residence every time little Hermione summoned her sippy cup from across the room. It is also my belief that with the companionship of a few witches and wizards who know a thing or two about magical children they will be able to adapt quite well. "

Igneous Kruskal burst out of his office looking like a rhinoceros ready to rampage, "BERKELEY, CAVANAUGH THAT GIRL HAS DONE IT AGAIN! I WANT THIS DEALT WITH NOW!"

"It seems it is time for us to go," said Dumbledore placidly.

* * *

Megan and Gregory Granger were often thought of as recluse. Some speculated it was because they were workaholics, others stated the couple were just plain antisocial. No one who knew the slightest bit about the Grangers could possibly understand why it was they preferred to keep to themselves. The Grangers were actually a lovely couple who spent most of their time at a volunteer dental clinic about a mile from their downtown neighborhood. The reason they didn't often socialize was actually due to their 15-month-old daughter Hermione. They loved their daughter more than anything in the world, but even they had to admit there was something strange about their baby girl.

It all started just a few weeks after Hermione was born Megan was in the alcove of their cramped apartment which she and her husband had converted into a nursery trying to figure out why her daughter hadn't stopped crying in over an hour when suddenly a toy her husband had misplaced the day before floated into the crib beside her. On a more recent occasion Greg was reading Hermione a story about a frog prince. No sooner had Greg closed the book then a large toad wearing a tiny golden crown materialized out of nowhere. As far as they knew Hermione had never used her powers in public. Although there were certain times that seemed a bit fuzzy to them. Either way neither parent could bear it if their little girl was taken from them so that she could be studied like a lab rat in some kind of a testing facility.

Today was a very important day for the Grangers. Greg's mother Mabel was visiting again which was something that often happened when you lived only a few miles away from your relatives. To be perfectly honest none of them were really looking forward to the visit. Mabel and her husband had chosen to wait a ridiculously long time before having a child. Meaning that Mabel was a very old, very deaf and very blind woman something they wouldn't mind if she weren't also critical and mean-spirited.

She had spent most of her day criticizing their entire lives from the organic food they ate to the rundown shack they lived in. Despite having dealt with Mabel before some of her comments especially the ones regarding how she chose to raise Hermione cut Megan very deeply. Strangely it was almost like Hermione understood Megan's pain and was now determined to do anything just to get Mabel off of Megan's back.

"Honestly Megan, this flat is filthy. oh no don't worry dear I understand. You're a working woman you don't have time to make the home of your husband and child inhabitable. If you did would've at least put up some decent wallpaper," Mabel spat after eating the "cardboard" meal Megan had cooked for dinner.

"Mother! That's enough," Greg snapped angrily.

Mabel looked furious but neither Greg or Megan were paying any attention to the unwelcome visitor, they were both staring at their daughter with horrified looks on their faces. Hermione had closed her eyes and was now babbling incoherently. They knew what was about to happen next. Desperately Megan tried to rush her daughter out of the room but it was too late. The next thing anyone knew the entire house was redecorated in a theme of unicorns and rainbows. Mabel took one look at her granddaughter screamed and then fainted. This did not do much for Hermione's fragile psyche.

"I a bad girl, daddy," Hermione whimpered.

"Oh no, no sweetheart, you were just trying to help Mummy and Daddy its okay. We'll figure out a way to get through this I promise," Greg said scooping up his daughter who was all too close to tears.

Hermione seemed pacified at her father's words and asked to be put back down. She then went around the room examining her handiwork. The more unicorns she saw the happier she got and she started clapping her hands with joy and telling her mother and father in her own limited vocabulary that their house was pretty. Megan was just about to ask their daughter to set the house right before Hermione's cranky old grandma woke up and got even crankier when there was a knock at the door. Both Megan and Gregory froze for a long time but the insistent knocking did not stop.

Reluctantly Megan went to the front door and opened it just enough so that she could see who was at the door but not enough for them to notice their recent redecoration.

Standing just beyond the door were two women that somehow seemed vaguely familiar to Megan and an elderly man whom she was quite certain she had never seen in her entire life. Ignoring the women for the time being Megan focused her attention solely on the man. He wore an aquamarine cloak which swept the ground and high-heeled, buckled boots. Everything about him suggested that the man was a crazed lunatic but, Megan couldn't help letting him in there was just something about those amazing blue eyes bright and sparkling behind half-moon spectacles that she couldn't resist.

"Good evening Madam, my name is Albus Dumbledore and these are my companions Margaret Cavanaugh and Annabelle Berkeley."

The woman that Mr. Dumbledore had called Annabelle didn't seem to be paying attention to the conversation and she was currently looking around the room and laughing hysterically, "My goodness Hermione, out of all the accidental magic I've seen I'd have to say this is the most interesting yet."

"What do you mean magic." Greg demanded picking up his daughter again and clutching her protectively to his chest.

Annabelle suddenly realize what it was she had said and was now mentally berating herself so much it took her several minutes to realize Maggie had dragged her off into another room and was yelling at her for her stupidity. by the time they returned everything was different.

Megan and Greg finally knew for certain that there was nothing wrong with their daughter. She was a witch and apparently there were quite a few witches and wizards all around the world. The house was now back to its usual state much to the annoyance of Hermione who seemed adamant that the house looked better the way she had fixed it and was now pouting in a corner. Albus was now being offered tea and crumpets by an eternally grateful Megan while Greg was now asking enthusiastic questions about the Wizarding world.

"Now, if it is all right with you I have a suggestion to make. While we can modify your mother's memories should this happen again but it cannot be done on a day-to-day basis. Living in such close proximity to her will make it very hard to keep your mother in the dark. I know it is a lot to ask of you but the neighborhood I have in mind has many families both Muggle and magical alike and there are some former pupils of mind who look after two little boys just as powerful as your daughter and I know they'd really love to meet you."

Megan took one look at her unconscious mother-in-law lying on the floor and she didn't have to give the offer another thought she'd give her left arm to be free of that wretched old woman whether or not Hermione was magical.

* * *

James Potter was alone for the first time since he and Lily had moved here to Founders Haven after Hogwarts. Sirius and Remus who were frequent visitors to the home were currently away on missions for the order and Lily decided to take little Harry with her to visit some of her old childhood friends that she hadn't seen since before she became a witch. James knew that he should be enjoying the rare moment of quiet and during the first few weeks after bringing Harry home from St. Mungo's he might have done so but at the moment James felt restless. As a matter of fact he was so bored he couldn't even focus on his designs or the Auror paperwork he was supposed to be catching up on.

Pacing around the den his eyes fell on the fireplace. _I could always call Arthur and see if he would like a sitter_, James thought. While Molly and Arthur were wonderful parents Molly's greatest fear in the world was that Voldemort would target her family. The Weasleys were already at risk because they were so-called blood traitors, Molly was convinced the marvelous prowess of her infant son was somehow going to shine a spotlight right on all of them.

Surely chasing around the four youngest Weasley boys would be enough of a distraction for the young father. He was halfway to the fireplace when he remembered something that dashed that plan. the Weasleys were currently in Ireland attending a wake for several of Molly's relatives. James was just about to retreat back to the den when the emerald glow of the fireplace caught his attention and he came face to face with his former headmaster Albus Dumbledore.

"Ah, James, I do hope I'm not intruding but I believe I have some news that might interest you," said the old headmaster blue eyes alight.

"Oh no, I wasn't busy at all. Can I get you something? butterbeer, Pumpkin juice, tea, " James offered shooing Lily's old calico, Mystic off the sofa so that professor Dumbledore would have a place to sit.

"No thank you my boy. Actually I've just come from tea with a lovely Muggle couple I have recently made the acquaintance of Mr. and Mrs. Granger," said Dumbledore watching James carefully.

James's head shot up so fast it popped in protest but he paid it no mind. He was too busy going over what the headmaster had said in his mind. _"... Actually I've just come from tea with a lovely Muggle couple I have recently made the acquaintance of Mr. and Mrs. Granger." _While it was true James personally hadn't made the acquaintance of the aforementioned couple he would never be able to forget that name, all because of a bushy brown haired little girl James met the summer before his final year at Hogwarts by the name of Hermione Granger.

Hermione was destined to be one of their son's closest friends and she'd never been very far from their minds whenever the marauders would watch Harry and Ron playing with one another. James, Lily, Sirius and Remus along with two of Lily's closest friends Victoria Willoughby and Olivia Cole were present for every moment of the boy's lives and it was a great joy to them but none of them could easily forget that there was a member of their family missing. Someone whose life they had not been a part of for... (James calculated the exact number in his head,)... 15 months! James couldn't believe it they'd actually missed the girl's first birthday.

"How is she," James asked not bothering to beat around the bush.

"I've brought some pictures, if you would like to --..."

But professor Dumbledore's comment was cut short by the arrival of the rest of the Potter family and most predictably Olivia and Victoria. At the mention of Hermione's name all three girls raced into the room as if there shoes were on fire leaving a very peeved Harry in the entryway. Annoyed Harry apparated into the room pointedly ignoring his mother and choosing to land in the headmaster's arms instead. Commandeering the photo album from the old man's hands Harry stared at a still photograph of his friend and began gurgling happily to it carrying on what was apparently a very involved conversation. Victoria chuckled as she walked over to the mantelpiece and snapped several shots of the priceless image.

When the grownups took the album from Harry the little boy was none too pleased but the problem was easily solved by Olivia who removed one of the photographs from behind its plastic cover and handed it to the child placing him in his playpen so they would be free to look at the rest of the pictures in peace. James watched in amusement as Harry crawled around the pen showing all of his toys to his new friend before joining his wife who was cooing at the adorable baby pictures. James always imagined that if he could just see Hermione's face again it would help to fill the void in his chest. Much to his dismay however rather than feeling better James felt a hundred times worse.

It was only now beginning to hit him just how much of the girl's life they'd already missed and strangely James felt a surge of resentment toward his idol for bringing the pictures into his life. His sadness quickly turned to elation when Professor Dumbledore informed them that Hermione would be moving to Founders Haven in a week's time. He couldn't believe it there was so much to be done! Jumping up from the arm of the sofa where he was seated James gave a loud whoop of joy and ran to pick up Harry who was staring at his father with the same are-you-mental look Lily always adopted whenever the marauders were up to their old tricks.

"Did you hear that Harry, Hermione's coming home," he exclaimed doing a funny jig which caused Victoria to take another picture.

The next several days were filled with activity. The first thing James did when professor Dumbledore left was called Sirius on the two-way mirrors to tell him to get his sorry butt back home or he would miss the opportunity to meet Hermione for the very first time. James was anticipating Sirius's reaction to the utterly adorable little girl as much as he was longing to have the little girl in his sights once more. Sirius who had always been something of a ladies man in school was always fascinating to watch whenever the subject of Hermione was brought up. The macho, motorbike riding teenager had positively melted every time Hermione walked into the room, he even taken to calling her his best girl. Getting a hold of Remus was a much harder task because he was currently tracking the movements of one Fenrir Greyback, and to contact him would risk giving away his position.

But it was eventually managed and before James knew it both of his brothers were tumbling out of the fireplace wearing extremely goofy grins. James, Remus and Sirius occupied the next several days by making what Victoria, Lily, and Olivia called unnecessary preparations for Hermione's arrival. The most vital of which was locating the stuffed Kneazle that would eventually become the girl's security item.

James had bestowed Harry with his favorite snowy owl Hedwig the moment he was born and Ron received Pig in much the same fashion. The marauders would sooner kiss Severus Snape before they would allow someone else to buy Hermione her most valued treasure. This was why the three men spent so much of their free time trolling magical toy store after magical toy store annoying several shop owners who couldn't understand why three grown men were being so picky over a simple stuffed Kneazle.

"Is there any particular reason you've visited the most remote toy shops in the United Kingdom? You're much more likely to get better results by going to a well-known chain of stores than you are by harassing the owners of small toy shops," Victoria stated reasonably as she glanced down at the map in Remus's hands.

"Are you mad? Do you honestly think that we would insult the intelligence of my best girl by trying to win her over with a mass-produced trinket from some cheesy overpriced conglomerate! She's a marauder protegee for crying out loud," Sirius proclaimed dramatically.

"Well if I were you I'd consider going down to Uncle Zappy's Playhouse and having a look around the plushy paradise," said Lily giving her husband a little kiss before disappearing into the kitchen.

James could tell by the way his wife and her friends were laughing that they must have spotted the elusive Kneazle while they were out running errands nevertheless he refused to believe that they would ever stoop to such a level. Time was running out quickly so finally admitting their defeat the marauders force themselves to walk into Uncle Zappy's Playhouse. To their horror they noticed Hermione's beloved Crookshanks immediately. There was an entire mount of identical Kneazels on a pedestal underneath a sign that read **special 50 percent off.** Blushing profusely Remus scoured the pile determined to retrieve one in mint condition and the three men made a pact never to speak of it again.

The casual observer might have found the way that the marauder family was watching the old McKinnon place to be more than of the bizarre. Most people avoided that house ever since Sophia and Matthew McKinnon were murdered by the Death Eaters but the marauders and the Weasleys couldn't seem to keep their eyes off of the old house as the Muggles moved in. Undoubtably picking up on the mood of the adults Ron and Harry were insatiably excited.

"Hermy, Hermy, HERMY," Ron squealed bobbing up and down as he watched his soon-to-be companion from the window.

"All right, all right," Arthur replied chuckling patiently. "Just let Mummy and Auntie Lily finish making the cake and we'll go down to the park so you can play with your new friend."

James felt a bit awkward telling Harry to be patient when he was chomping at the bit himself. Apart from Hermione the only thing James could think about was how Sirius hadn't gotten there yet. _I'm going to kill that stupid mutt, _James thought as he walked with Remus, Lily, Olivia, Victoria, the boys and the Weasleys over to the Granger's new residents.

The Granger's Megan and Greg were very nice. James instantly noticed that Hermione had inherited her mother's bushy hair and her father's light brown eyes. As expected Harry, Ron and Hermione hit it off from the moment they met. Even if James and Lily made a horrible impression on Hermione's parents (which they were determined would not happen,) James doubted very much if Megan and Greg would ever be able to pry the three apart. By the time the families took off for the park Lily and Megan were fast friends and the marauders were working their charm on Greg, but there was still no sign of Sirius.

The play date was halfway over and James had checked his watch two hundred thirty-six times. Finally Sirius came roaring down the street on his motorbike startling Megan who was currently exchanging recipes with Molly. Ron looked up from the sandbox where he'd been playing and apparated into Sirius's arms. Sirius smiled receiving the greeting happily as he removed his helmet. Putting Ron down next to his friends Sirius stared longingly at Hermione but wisely thought better of it choosing instead to greet his godson who for the first time in his life was not pleased to be torn away from his new friend so his godfather could tickle him, which consequently only made Sirius tickle Harry that much more. Satisfied that he'd fulfilled his godfatherly duties Sirius approached James, Remus and Greg.

"You're late," James snapped.

"Sorry," Sirius muttered "I couldn't find the Kneazle."

"Honestly Padfoot do I have to do everything for you," Remus asked rolling his eyes.

A few minutes later when all the introductions had been made the girls sat under an enormous redwood tree watching the marauders as they fussed over the little ones. Lily was extraordinarily happy. She couldn't help but laugh at the sight of Remus giving Hermione a pony ride. Lily was very surprised when in place of her laughter there suddenly came tears. A hole in her heart was filled, Hermione was home.

"Isn't it funny how one little girl can have three of the most macho men wrapped around her finger in a matter of seconds," Olivia asked breaking the young mothers train of thought.

"She certainly does seem more like a princess than a ladybug," Lily replied.

* * *

... And that ladies and gentlemen was my very first one shot some of you may have noticed that rather than living in Godric's Hallow I put Lily James and Harry in a little place I called Founder's Haven for those of you wondering why the answer is because I never liked the idea of someone going into hiding by staying at home so Godric's Hollow ended up where they hid and Founder's Haven is where they live. Anyway read and review and I'll catch you later

EC


End file.
